What Have I Gotten Into?
by LoveandButterflyKisses
Summary: Lily knows that she doesn't love James, but everyone else decided that she does. Between Head Girl duties, planning a ball, and having to live with James, her seventh year is going to be the worst ever- or so she thinks! Please read and review! k  for now
1. Letters and Dark Wizards

_Dear Ms. Evans,_

_We are pleased to inform you that for your seventh and final year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, you will have the privilege of being our Head Girl. This is an honor bestowed on only two students per year, so please be careful not to misuse your status. _

_Term begins on September 1. On the train returning to Hogwarts, you, the Head Boy, and the Prefects from all years and houses will meet in the Prefects compartment. Until then, you are free to sit with anyone you choose, unlike the Prefects._

_Starting September 3, you and the Head Boy will have weekly meetings, accompanied by one or more staff members. Professor Slughorn has asked to be your faculty advisor, so he will be meeting with you most of the time. _

_Your new dorm is located behind the portrait of Montigue the Magnificent on the seventh floor. The password is "Corazon", pronounced cor-a-ZOHN. _

_I offer my sincere congratulations to you once again, and I look forward to seeing you in September._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore_

_Headmaster_

P.S.- Please meet me in my office as soon as you and your new dorm mate have settled. The password is Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. No matter what time you get in, see me. This is absolutely crucial.

I laughed. I was Head Girl! I ran down to the kitchen to tell my dad. "Dad, Dad, you'll never guess what!" I cried. As I reached the kitchen, I didn't see my father, but rather my sister Tuney, with her bear-sized boyfriend Vernon. Who was down on one knee, proposing.

I stopped in my tracks. "Oh, Godric." They both looked up at me.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Petunia asked me.

I stared at Vernon, then replied, "Oh, what the hell am I doing? I am getting the bloody well out of here. Merlin, you two are disgusting."

Petunia sneered, "Well, as I am marrying Vernon, you won't have to see me much longer."

I screamed. This could not be happening. "Just promise me one thing. When you get married, make it when I'm in school. I don't want to have to witness this. I thought you were smarter than that, Tuney."

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_We are pleased to inform you that for your seventh and final year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, you will have the privilege of being our Head Boy. This is an honor bestowed on only two students per year, so please be careful not to misuse your status. _

_Term begins on September 1. On the train returning to Hogwarts, you, the Head Girl, and the Prefects from all years and houses will meet in the Prefects compartment. Until then, you are free to sit with anyone you choose, unlike the Prefects._

_Starting September 3, you and the Head Girl will have weekly meetings, accompanied by one or more staff members. Professor Slughorn has asked to be your faculty advisor, so he will be meeting with you most of the time. _

_Your new dorm is located behind the portrait of Montigue the Magnificent on the seventh floor. The password is "Corazon", pronounced cor-a-ZOHN. _

_I offer my sincere congratulations to you once again, and I look forward to seeing you in September._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore_

_Headmaster_

_P.S.- Please meet me in my office as soon as you and your new dorm mate have settled. The password is Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. No matter what time you get in, see me. This is absolutely crucial._

"Are you serious? James Potter, Head Boy?" Sirius cried.

I smiled, "No, you're Sirius. And do you want to see the letter?" He grabbed it out of my hand.

Sirius patted me on the back. "Hey, this is fantastic. You share a dorm with the Head Girl, and you know who is definitely going to be Head Girl!" He jumped up on the bed and started singing, "JAMES AND LILY SITTING IN A TREE, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" I reached up and threw a pillow at his head. Sirius promptly fell off the bed.

My mum called up the steps, "Sirius, are you all right?" She knew us well.

"Everything's good, Mum! But what does Corazon mean?" he called. Since Sirius had moved in with us this summer, he had started referring to my parents as Mum and Dad. They didn't care, especially since they were more Siri's parents than the Blacks were.

"I believe it's Spanish for heart. Why?" she asked.

He made a face at me, and cried, "No reason!"

"Hold on, let me write to Dad. He'll be so excited!" I said, pulling out a sheet of parchment and a quill.

_Dad,_

_I'm Head Boy. I just got the letter today, and wanted you to be the first (Well, second- Sirius peeked) to know. I'm so excited!_

_Love,_

_James._

_PS- Hi Dad! He showed me, I didn't peek! Love, Sirius._

After Sirius had added his bit, I sent it to the Ministry. Within minutes, a response returns.

_James,_

_That is such an honor! I am so proud of you! When I get home, we are going to celebrate. Invite Remus and Peter over!_

_Love,_

_Dad_

_PS- Hi Sirius! I believe James, but I still love you! Love, Dad_

As I finished reading the letter aloud, Remus apparated into the room. He looked at Sirius on the floor, then turned to me, unconcerned. "Congratulations, mate, I just heard!"

"Merlin, how does this get around so quickly?" I asked.

Remus laughed. "It wasn't that, I just heard Sirius screaming and put two and two together. I suspect Wormtail knows by now, too, but his mum won't let him out of the house."

A scream pierced through the house. The three of us looked at each other, and ran downstairs.

"Mum!" Sirius yelled. "What happened?" We reached the kitchen.

My mum was laying on the ground, overcome by tears. A man with Ministry robes on was kneeling next to her, trying to comfort her. I shoved him away, and stayed next to my mother, whispering words of comfort. Sirius backed him up against the wall, wand pointed at his throat.

"What in the name of Merlin happened to my mother?" he barked.

The Ministry wizard put his hands up, then asked, "Are you Mr. Potter?"

Remus was standing quietly at the door, but with that comment he walked over to Padfoot and held up his own wand. "We are not of the name Potter, but we are Harold's children. Tell us what has happened. NOW."

The man said, "We are horrified to inform you that Mr. Harold Potter, of Potter Manor, was killed today in a fight with Dark Wizards. His body remains at the Ministry. We ask that you pick it up for burial in seventy-two hours at the most, or it will be cremated and kept in the cremation grounds at the Ministry."


	2. The Train to Hogwarts

As I ran through the platform for the final time, I felt almost melancholy. School for me had been the only place I had ever really fit in. My sister had hated me the whole time I was at school, and though I knew my parents supported me, it wasn't really home until I got back to school.

I boarded the train and immediately started looking for my best friends. Alice and Marlene told me that they were going to save me a compartment. I hadn't told them about becoming Head Girl, so I wanted to tell them as soon as possible.

They had saved the best compartment in the train, the one as close to the door as you can get. When I walked in, Alice squealed and hugged me tightly.

"Alice, I can't breathe!" I gasped. She let go of me, but didn't look apologetic.

She looked at me expectantly and asked, "So, what happened this summer?"

I screamed, "I'm Head Girl!" Marlene got up and hugged me tightly, and we all jumped around excitedly.

"How did we know that it was going to be Lily?" Marlene asked.

Alice replied, "Because our darling Lily gets EVERYTHING. Prefect, Head Girl, James Potter…"

"Speaking of James Potter, I need to talk to you, Lily!" Remus Lupin strolled into the compartment. He was the only one of the Marauders that I actually enjoyed spending time with. Sirius was annoying, Peter was needy, and James was… James.

"Sure, Remus. Here, or…?" I asked. He motioned for me to follow, and I did. We walked a bit further down, to a compartment filled with two out of the three other boys.

I asked, "Where's James?" The three exchanged sad glances. Sirius was especially looking torn up. "Guys, what's going on?" None of them ever looked like this…

Remus took a deep breath, and said, "Lily, James's father was killed last week by a Death Eater. The funeral is tomorrow, so Professor Dumbledore gave him special permission to skip the first week and be with his mother."

Sirius muttered, "The damn man wouldn't let me be with my family…" A tear rolled down his face. I moved to the other side of the compartment and put my arm around him. I was close to tears myself.

I whispered, "Oh no, not Mr. Harold…" Harold Potter was a great man, his legacy surrounding wizards wherever they went, and I knew that James was very close to him. He must be devastated.

Peter asked, "Lily, we wanted to know if you would write to him, maybe try and cheer him up?"

"Yes, I think that you and Sirius are really the only people who could possibly cheer him up. Padfoot has tried, but…" He gestured to Sirius. "We think it would be best if you tried."

I wiped the tears coming down my face. "Of course I will," I choked.

Remus continued, "He's also Head Boy, so you're going to need to pick up some of the extra responsibilities. If you need my help, I'm here."

I nodded, "That would be best." Sirius started sobbing more heavily than before.

"Head Boy," he choked out. "That was the last thing we ever talked to him about. James told Dad that he was Head Boy. We were going to have a party, and have everyone over. I was even going to invite you, Lily, without telling James. The last thing he told us was that he loved us. And… h-he's… gone!" Sirius put his head in my lap, and I smoothed his hair over.

Remus stood up. "I think you should stay here, with Sirius. Wormtail and I will go to the Prefect's meeting and take care of everything," he whispered.

"Thank you!" I mouthed, and with that the two of them left. It was just the two of us, crying harder and harder with each passing moment.

When we were close to arriving at Hogwarts, Sirius picked himself up. "We should probably get changed. You can leave, if you want to," he told me, a bit too harshly in my opinion.

"Should I come back, or do you want me to get Remus and Peter?"

His gaze softened a bit. "Can you come back? They don't really understand that well, and I know you don't either, but you need to understand what happened. I think I'm ready to tell you now."

I nodded, and ran back to my compartment. The girls looked at me in shock, as I pulled out my bag, and shoved on my robes.

"Sweetheart, your makeup is all messed up. And shouldn't you be patrolling the train? What's going on?" Alice embraced me.

"James's dad is dead. I need to go back to Sirius. They say I need to know what happened. I'll take my makeup off when we get to the castle. I'll see you at the feast, all right?" I quickly explained.

Marlene hugged me, too. "Of course, we'll see you as soon as you get back." I shut the compartment door and returned to Sirius.

"OK," I breathed, scared of what was to come. "I'm ready."


	3. The Whole Story

Sirius began, "On August 22, Dad went to work, same as always. He's an Auror, I'm sure you know that. When he got to work, there was an owl for him. A Dark Wizard had been found in Little Whinging, which is in Surrey."

"Right, that's where Vernon lives," Imuttered. Sirius stared at me. "Soory, muttering about my own problems, wich is really not the point of this conversation, is it?"

He continued, "Well, when Dad got to Surrey, he had a team of five wizards, including himself, to get the one Dark Wizard. Well, there wasn't just one. There were thirteen. Dad and the others tried as hard as they could to fight them off, but none could. Only one man survived, and that was because after Dad died, he went to get reinforcements," Sirius put his head in his hands.

I rubbed his back, and asked, as gently as I could, "Did Dumbledore say you couldn't stay back?"

He nodded. "When the man killed Dad, he first stopped and-" he resumed crying, and I waited patiently until he felt well enough to begin again. "He stopped and used the Cruciatus Curse." I gasped. This was unforgivable- literally, it was one of the three Unforgivable Curses.

"Then, he spit in Dad's face. He laughed and mocked Dad, and how great he was. He said that the rest of his… his blood-traitor family would go the same way, even me. Then, he killed him." Sirius stood up. "He killed my father. That man is going to pay!" He tried to run out of the compartment, but I grabbed on to his arm and held on tight. He tried to shake me off. "Lily Evans, let go of me! I need to find the man who killed my dad! I need to torture him like he tortured!" No matter what he said, I held on.

"Sirius Orion Black! You can't go avenge James's and your father, no matter how much you want to! Think of your mum and James? What would they think, if you died too? Both of you gone in two weeks! You have to stay alive for them, if for no one else, you hear me?" Sirius slumped back in his chair as the train pulled to a stop.

I stood on the seat to pull the trunks down. "In about one hour, I have to go and meet with Professor Dumbledore. I expect Remus will have to come with me. Are you going to be alright?"

Sirius shrugged. Well, that settles it. I am going to get him to go home for his father's funeral, no matter how long it took.

Well, that was that. The dorm room I was going to be staying in was absolutely lovely. It had turned itself bright purple, with enough scarlet in it to be distinguished as a Gryffinor Head's room. There was a gigantic bookcase in it. A note left on the shelf stated that it would take out and return library books whenever I wanted. The common room was, if possible, even bigger than the one in Gryffindor Tower! I absolutely loved it, but it was strangely empty.

As I had finished settling in, I started to Professor Dumbledore's office. On my way there, I saw Remus and Peter heading toward the feast. "Remus, can you come with me?" I asked. "Professor Dumbledore wanted James and me to come to his office tonight, and I expect that while he's gone, you will take his place."

Remus replied, "Yes, of course. See you at the feast, Peter. Save me a seat!" We began our walk to Dumbledore's office.

I asked quietly, "How is Black doing?"

Remus sighed. "Look, I don't know what you said to him, or what he said to you, but it seems that he is even more miserable than when we started on the train."

"I'm going to ask Professor Dumbledore to let him go home for the funeral. It's tomorrow morning, right? Then he'll have enough time to get back home!"

Remus looked at me with respect- more so than usual. "You would do that for Sirius?"

I blushed and sighed, "If it was my dad, I would want him to do the same for me." I came to a stop in front of the gargoyles at the entrance of Dumbledore's office. I said the password, and entered the office. When I came to the door, I knocked, admiring the intricate detail of the knocker.

Dumbledore came to the door and opened it, a grim look on his face. "Ms. Evans, welcome. You brought Mr. Lupin with you, good, I had forgotten to ask you to do that. Please, come in."

We sat on the comfortable chairs in front of his desk. Dumbledore sat on his throne-looking chair, and folded his hands on the table.

"It has come to my attention, Ms. Evans, that you and Mr. Potter are not on the best of terms. When he returns, I quite expect he will be devastated. We must agree to work together for his well-being. You understand?" he asked.

"Of course, Professor Dumbledore. About that… I actually wanted to know if Sirius Black could go home and go to the funeral." Dumbledore looked as if he was about to speak, so I pressed on, "He's devastated, sir. Sirius was as much Harold's son as James was. He needs to be there. Sirius was absolutely distraught on the train, and it will be that much worse tomorrow. Please, sir," I begged. I was going to continue, but Dumbledore held his and up, and I slouched back in my chair. I had done all I could do.

Dumbledore told me, "I understand. In any other circumstances, I would refuse your request, but since I personally have seen Sirius and Harold in action, I will have to agree with you. When we are finished, come back with him and you can Floo to the Potter's house with him, Ms. Evans." I didn't expect that. "I expect that James will want your support, any way he can have it." I did expect that.

"Thank you, sir," I said.

"Now, about your duties. Remus, when Lily and Sirius leave, I am putting you in charge of all of their duties. When you return, Lily, I expect that you will relay them to James." We both nodded.

"Patrols around the castle occur from nine at night until six in the morning. You will be given a free period for your first class, so that you can get a bit of shut-eye in between patrols. You must assign each prefect their patrol nights. Two prefects a night, preferably. You two will be called to my office once a month to plan new activities for younger students, but also the once-weekly meeting with Professor Slughorn is required.

"For your first assignment, the faculty asks that you plan a ball for all grades. No theme, but it must occur by October 10, so that you can properly prepare for the Holloween feast. That is your main priority until then." I grinned. This was going to be so much fun!

"Professor, since Remus is going to be filling in for James, can I ask Marlene to fill in for me? I think it's only proper that there will be two Head, or in this case, sub-Heads." I asked.

Dumbledore appeared thoughtful for a moment, then replied, "I would actually prefer it if you would ask Alice." I smiled. Alice would have a much easier time planning the all, as Marlene didn't really care about those sorts of things, and Dumbledore knew it.

"That's all I needed to say. Good luck!" All three of us stood. "Ms. Evans, please return quickly. I will send your trunks soon after I send you and Sirius."

Remus and I ran as fast as we could to the Gryffindor common room. I got ahead of Remus and rushed up the stairs to the boys' dormitory.

"Sirius! Guess what? " I cried. Sirius peeked his head out from underneath the covers.

"What is it? I'm trying to sleep here!" he groaned. I sat on the edge of his bed.

I told him, "You're going home, for tomorrow morning! Dumbledore said that you can go home!"

Sirius sat up in bed. "I can go home?" I noticed the tear stains on his cheeks, but didn't mention them.

"Yes, you can go home!" I cried.

Sirius reached over and embraced me tightly. "I don't know whether to be happy or sad! I can go home!"

I replied with a grin, "You can decide on the way. Now get a move on. Dumbledore wanted us to hurry!"

"Us.. you're coming too?" Sirius asked. "Well, I guess James would have asked that you come as well."

"James?" I asked. "He didn't ask for you to come!"

Lupin butted in, "Lily wanted for you to come, and she didn't ask to go herself. Dumbledore said that Prongs might want to see her."

Sirius thought about it, then nodded. "Yeah, that might be best. Now, come on! I want to go home!" he whined. He grabbed my hand and pulled me along. I laughed, and shouted goodbye to Alice and Marlene, who were sitting in the common room.

Sirius was going home.


	4. Pleading Time!

I coughed and fell out of the fireplace, Sirius the only thing that held me up. I looked around the room. It seemed to be a bedroom, but not a used one- a guest bedroom, perhaps? Sirius obviously knew where he was going, so I hurried to follow after him. We arrived at a door, painted Gryffindor red. A silver plaque read "James H. Potter." A similar, golden plaque hung underneath it. That read "Sirius O. Black." Their bedroom.

Sirius knocked on the door. James yelled, lifelessly, "Leave me alone." Sirius barged in anyway.

James was sitting on his bed, a Snitch flying around his head. Sirius walked over to James. "Hey, mate," he said. James looked up at Sirius in amazement.

"What are you doing here, Padfoot?" James asked.

Sirius pointed in my direction. "I wouldn't bloody well be here without her, would I?" James looked at where Sirius was pointing. He and I met eyes, and he burst into a huge grin. Honestly, he would have given the Cheshire Cat a run for his money.

"LILY-FLOWER!" he shouted. I sat on his bed, and he pulled me over to hug me a huge hug. "You did this for us?"

I blushed. "Of course I did. I wasn't right that Sirius had to stay at school. He is as much his son as you are." James' face fell at the mention of his father, and I cursed myself. I was here to make him feel better. "So, are you going to be a good host, or what?"

James tried to get out of bed, but fell over, tangled in the sheets. When he was properly standing, he bowed and offered me his arm. "Would you allow me to escort you to the kitchen?"

I crossed my arms. "Call it off, Potter, just take me down."

James shrugged. "Sirius?"

Sirius did what can only be described as bounced over to his "brother". "Certainly, James, my boy." They skipped down the stairs, and I followed seconds behind.

When we reached the kitchen, James stopped and turned to me. Before I could stop him, he picked me up and set me on the counter. "Now, Lily, what would you like? Water? Pumpkin juice? Butterbeer? Firewhiskey?"

I frowned at the thought to his underage drinking , and he backed up. "Of course not firewhiskey, Lily. How about some of this Muggle stuff? Mum brought it home one day for Dad's… well, for a dinner party. I think it's called Sprite." He handed me a can. I downed it quickly, accidentally belching when I had finished.

I looked for a trash can, noticing the boys' stares. "What?" I asked defensively.

"Blimey, Lily, I think you may just be one of us!"

"Oh, shut it, Potter," I said, blushing a bit. In order to change the conversation a bit, I asked, "So where am I sleeping for the next few days? I would rather not have to sleep on the couch, so if you don't mind showing me a room, I'm awfully tired and need to explain to the girls where I am."

James grabbed my hand and apparated into another room of the house. It looked exactly like…

"Why do you have a room for me here that looks exactly like the one I had in Gryffindor Tower?" I asked. James promptly disapparated. Merlin's pants, I had forgotten what a bloody jerk he was. However, he never said I couldn't change the room, so I did. I mean, I had decorated my room in the Tower when I was eleven, and hadn't changed it since. It was time for a new look.

Soon enough, the walls were light yellow with purple polka-dots. I enchanted the ceiling to look like the one in the Great Hall. The covers on the king-size bed was light purple, and my favorite movies were stacked on top of a ginormous television set. Satisfied, I climbed into the huge bed and transformed my clothes into a pair of pajamas. I turned out the light, and drifted into a peaceful slumber.


	5. Helping the House Elves

A/N: I am so sorry that I haven't posted in a while, but my computer got screwed up, so I couldn't get on the doc manager. :-( Plus, with me starting a new school, my life is kind of crazy, but I promise that I will try as hard as I can to update regularly! Thanks for sticking with me!

The next morning, I woke up in a daze. For a second, I panicked, wondering where the bloody hell I was. Then, I remembered where I was and what was happening.

I got out of bed quickly and rushed to the kitchen. I figured that James and Sirius would need some extra love (Salazar, did I just say that?) today, more than any other. Hopefully, I would beat the house elves to breakfast.

As luck would have it, I walked in on the elves preparing to start breakfast. "Excuse me," I said tentatively. "Would you mind if I brought the boys their breakfasts this morning? And maybe, could I help make it?"

An elf walked up to me, beaming. He had a bright red tea cosy on, and his bright purple eyes shone with gratitude. "Thank you, miss!" he cried. "With all that is being done for Master Harold's funeral today, Feliz and his friends are very busy! Feliz will help you prepare Master Sirius and Master James' food, and the rest of Feliz's friends can get started on the preparations!" Feliz snapped his fingers, and the house elves all ran to the other side of the kitchen.

The short, skinny house elf walked me to the stove. "Master James enjoys chamomile tea, two slices of banana bread, and a bowl of cereal. Master Sirius likes pumpkin juice, three pancakes, and a slice of French toast. Mistress Lily can please start with the tea, cereal, and French toast, while Feliz makes the rest."

"Oh, that's great, Feliz, and it's just Lily." I replied. I summoned the cereal, French toast materials, and tea leaves, and Feliz left me alone.

After about fifteen minutes, I had finished my tasks, so I went to talk to the elves. Feliz in particular enjoyed talking to me about the family he served. "Feliz quite likes serving the Potters. This job is much more fun than the others Feliz has had. Masters James and Sirius come down and visit us all the time!" he cried cheerfully.

"James visits you a lot?" I asked.

Feliz replied breezily, "All the time, Miss! Just to keep Feliz company! Oh, Master James is a wonderful man! He speaks of you regularly, miss!" I blushed, and discontinued the conversation.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, Feliz chimed, "Feliz is finished, miss! Miss can take Master James his food now! Thank you very much, Miss!"

I took the trays from Feliz and started up the steps. When I reached the boys' bedroom, I knocked, then barged in. I heard a moan of displeasure.

"Mum, don't make me get up today, please." James muttered at me. Sirius just turned in his bed and went back to sleep.

I whispered, "James, Sirius, I have your food!"

James started to get up, but slumped over before he got the whole way up. "I don't want food. I want to sleep all day, and all day tomorrow, and all next week. I never want to get up again."

I put the platter down on a desk, and sat on the edge of James' bed. Stroking his hair, I soothed, "Sweetheart, I know that today is a horrid day. But you need to get up and eat something." I reached over, and the cup of tea flew into my hand, barely spilling. "Drink some tea."

James finally sat up, and reached for the drink. He poured some into his mouth, not noticing the fact that it had spilled all over his pajamas. Quietly, I said, "_Scorgeo," _and the tea stains vanished before they could settle.

"Lily… What am I going to do?" he asked me pleadingly.

I wanted badly to tell him that he could go back to bed and never wake up, but I knew that wasn't going to cut it. "Look, Potter," I said, a bit harshly. I hadn't called him Potter since I got here, so I knew it would shock him into listening. "You need to get up, get dressed, and get to the funeral. You need to continue with your life- not like this never happened, but like you became a better and stronger person because of it. Most of you, you do NOT need to pretend to be strong for your father and sister, because you know that they don't have anyone to come home to." I had tears in my eyes, but I blinked them away angrily.

James stared at me in shock. "Lily-flower, what are you talking about?" He held me in his arms, but for once, I didn't complain.

"My mother was killed last month. On July 24, she was in a car crash caused by the other driver. She was the one who didn't walk away," I whispered. James froze, then continued to hug me.

Sometime during this, Sirius had woken up. He walked over and sat on my other side, wrapping his arm around me. "Lils, why didn't you say anything on the train? You were crying, too…" he trailed off.

"You have enough bull going through your lives right now, I didn't want to trouble you. I've accepted Mum's death, and I just have to deal." I was right, I thought. The boys were obviously not as convinced.

James said softly, "You should have said. This is as important, no matter when it happened or why."

I told them, "Alice and Marlene don't even know. I was going to tell them on the train, but Remus pulled me away and told me about you, and…" I sobbed quietly, and James pulled me back against his chest. "I di-di-didn't want t-t-t-to trouble anybody!"

I stopped trying to talk after that. It wasn't worth it to let the tears fall. I just let James and Sirius hold me, and the three of us all mourned our losses, and the others'.

When our eyes were left empty, I got up and stretched. "We should get ready," I proclaimed, not meeting their eyes. "The ceremony starts in an hour."

At the gravestone, I held onto James tightly, letting him cry into my shoulder. I just stared at Harold's tombstone, feeling a strong sense of Déjà vu.

Harold A. Potter

Born 07 April 1937

Died 26 August 1977

I know them now, my ancient enemies…

Remembering my mother's burial, tears pooled in my eyes, but I fought them. I needed to be strong for James and Sirius.

Mrs. Potter walked over to the two of us, and James reached over to hug his mother. At that point, Sirius came and cried on my shoulder. With a shock, I realized that everyone else had left. James grabbed onto my hand and the four of us disapparated back to Potter Mansion.

James still had a python's grip on my arm, and he pulled my into a spare room and enveloped me in his arms. We both cried his time- him for his father, and me for my mother.

Choking back tears, I asked, "What was that quote from?"

James stopped crying. He sniffled a bit, then replied, "It's from Cyrano de Bergerac. The full quote is 'I know them now, my ancient enemies- Falsehood! There! There! Prejudice- Compromise- Cowardice!' He loved that play, and the quote just fit him, you know? He wasn't any of those things, but other men were, and now he's dead." He said this almost matter-of-factly.

I nodded in sadness. Harold Potter was a man who's legacy preceeded him, but James just knew him as Dad.

James pulled a piece of parchment out of his pocket. "Do you want to see the last thing he ever wrote to me?"

I was startled. "No, that's private, you don't need to show me that."

James shoved it into my hand. "I want you to."

I quickly read it over. "Oh James," I sighed. This must have meant the world to him now. I put my head on his shoulder, and we sat for a moment. I don't know what he was thinking, but I was thinking what would happen if I had lost my dad.

James nudged me. "So, Evans," he began.

"What, Potter?" I asked.

James had a cocky grin on his face, which made me believe he had returned to normal. "Does this mean I have a chance with you?"

I answered, "No, you're still an arrogant, bullying toe-rag, just one who I can relate to."

James smiled. "I'll get you, Lily-flower, don't worry. You won't have to keep up this pretense for long." I shot him a look. "What?" he asked defensively. "I saw how you were taking care of me yesterday and today. You wouldn't have been so nice to me if you didn't care at all."

"Oh, sod off," I muttered. James smile grew even larger, but it sad this time.

"You know, maybe I should just give up."

"What?" James Potter, give up? There's no way.

James smirked. "Hearing OK, Evans? I said, I might give up."

Whew,. I could maybe finish off my final year without him badgering me.

"I heard that girls like the martyr type."


	6. AN Sorry! I hate them too :

Hey everyone!

I am so sorry that I have not been publishing lately. I am sorry to say that at this point I don't have any more chapters. School has been entirely too stressful, and I need to focus on my studies before I write anymore Fanfiction. Thanks so much for being understanding. Hopefully, I will be able to get everything under control and start posting asap!

Love you guys!


	7. The Morning After

I coughed as the green smoke swirled around me until it was impossible for me to see. This was definitely the worse part about traveling by Floo powder. Thankfully, it only lasted for a few seconds, and I slid out of the fireplace onto the floor and almost hit my head on Dumbeldore's desk. Thankfully, Sirius was there to catch me before I did any real damage to myself.

"Evans, how many years has it been since you started this?" he scoffed.

I frowned at him, and walked out of the office. James must have just come out of the fireplace moments after I left, because not even a minute later, they were both chasing me down the hallways of the fourth floor. Suddenly, I turned around and faced them.

"Lily-flower," James called.

I stared at the two boys. "Listen to me, carefully. Whatever happened at Potter Manor, stays at Potter Manor. Now leave me alone. I have a ton of makeup work to be done." OK, so maybe that was a bit harsh, but I couldn't have people thinking that I was nice to the boys.

James stared at me in disgust. "I thought you were going to be different this term, Evans." He walked away, shaking his head.

Sirius laughed at me. "Nice going, Evans, now you're going to have to share a dorm with Sir Sobs-A-Lot. You couldn't have put that any nicer?" He ran to catch up with his friend, and I continued on the way to the Gryffindor common room.

When I reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, she yelled at me, "I saw what happened back there with Mr. Potter, Ms. Evans! That was completely out of line."

I sighed, "That's great, and I really don't care right now. _Patronus utilis_." The Fat Lady didn't reply, yet swung open to reveal Alice and Marlene standing at the door. Alice gave me a huge hug.

"Oh my goodness, what happened? I mean, Dumbledore came in and explained to us what happened, but what happened?" That was Alice. She and Marlene had a standing bet on when James and I would get together. The two things I protest more than anything else- gambling, and James Potter dating me, ew.

I laughed. "Nothing happened at all. I mean, we went to the funeral, we drank a bit that night, and that was it."

Marlene looked scandalized. "You, Lily Evans, drank?"

"Yeah, Mrs. Potter brought us some firewhiskey and let us have at it. She even drank with us!" Mrs. Potter drunk certainly was a funny sight to imagine, and we all cracked up.

Marlene stopped giggling. "What about you and James, how's that going?"

I laughed even harder. "That's a moot point, because we really have no relationship to begin with. The closest we ever got to swapping spit was the one bottle of firewhiskey we all shared." She looked almost sad about it.

I sobered up a bit. "Listen, guys. I needed to be there for him, because if I didn't then he would be miserable all year, and I couldn't work with him. That's it."

Alice laughed. "Sure, Lils. Now, tell us all about your summer."

Sirius told me, "Look, mate, she's just being stupid. You know how she gets."

I sighed. "Yeah, but this is the last chance I have. After seventh year, we're done. If I screw this up, I can't make it better."

Remus and Peter saw us walking, and came up to us. Remus nodded at me, while Peter gave me a hug. For a rat, he sure has a bear grip.

"So, where are we going?" Peter asked. I contemplated for a second, then replied, "My room."

Sirius gave a huge cheer, and led the way to my new dorm. I said the password, and we entered.

My room was the neatest place in the world. It was all red and green, which made it look like Christmas. The wallpaper had famous Quidditch teams on it, flying. On my bed was a spell that would allow me to enter the game for an hour a day.

Sirius immediately took the spell and entered the game. Peter snuck into the mini fridge, which would be filled with any sort of food I wanted. Remus sat on my bed and chuckled to himself.

"What are you smirking at?" I asked him.

Remus grinned. "Oh, nothing in particular."

I held up my wand. "Remus, I swear to Godric, if you don't tell me-"

Remus held up his hands in protest. "All right, all right! It's just, the password."

I laughed. "Yeah, I know. It's great, isn't it?"

Peter looked up imploringly.

Sirius screamed from inside my wallpaper, "CORAZON MEANS HEART IN SPANISH, WORMTAIL!"

Peter laughed. "Oh, as in you and Lily!"

I rolled my eyes. "No, as in me and Cierra Dragonsmead.

Peter appeared shocked, but I knew he was joking. "Cierra, as in the one dating Vincent Bulstrode?"

Remus laughed. "Yes, Peter, James and Cierra became engaged last summer, didn't he tell you?"

Peter screamed. "HIDE ME! HIDE ME! DON'T MAKE ME COME, PLEASE DON'T MAKE ME COME!"

I smiled. "Didn't I tell you, Wormy? Padfoot couldn't make it to the wedding, so you and Moony are my best men!"

Peter fell onto my bed, yelling, "SAY IT AIN'T SO, PRONGS! SAY IT AIN'T SO!"

Remus and I stared at each other for a second, but all pretenses were dropped and we fell onto the floor, laughing as hard as was possible. Suddenly, I heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" I called.

Lily's voice yelled back at me. "Will you three be quiet? I have a lot of work to do, and you should be catching up,too! And Remus, did you tell him about the dance? How did you and Alice do?"

I stared at Remus. He rolled his eyes. We had a lot of catching up to do.


	8. Return to Hogwarts

**A/N: So, the other day I got an anonymous review, basically flaming my lack of a bit of continuity and the fact that one of the parts of this story did not match up. Next time, whoever you are, please leave a link to your profile so that you can show me how it's supposed to be done.**

**Also, just so you know, I am always looking for a beta. So if you would like to beta- read for me, please PM me!**

**Now, on with the story! I'm sorry I haven't been updating a lot lately, school has been horrendous. **

The next morning, I was in the common room, brushing my long hair out to its rich orange color. James was on the other side of the room, fiddling with what looked like a piece of glass. We sat in silence, neither of us wanting the companionship of the other, yet not wanting to be alone. Finally, James spoke.

"We have to meet with Professor Slughorn today, correct?" Only nine words. James was not normally this quiet. But I didn't really mind.

I replied, "No, Professor Dumbledore is meeting with us today. He wants to know how we are coming along with the ball."

"And am I ever going to learn what we're doing with the ball, or are you just going to do all the work?" he asked, very out of character. I wondered what was up with him. However, I wasn't about to let his attitude get in the way of our work.

"Well, we obviously need to get together at some point today so that I can catch you up. We have to meet him at eight o'clock, so let's meet at lunchtime. We can eat and work."

A wry smile popped up on his face. "Don't you always do that, Evans?"

I chuckled. "Yeah, but you don't."

James allowed himself a normal-sized grin, then picked up his bag and exited our common room. "See you at lunch, then,"

I told him, "Oh, and you might want to bring some parchment. I have quite a lot of notes."

At lunch, after about three hours of absolutely brutal classes- who ever decided that I was allowed to take double Ancient Runes and double Arithmancy on a Friday morning Whoever decided that I wanted to? - I went to the Great Hall to meet Lily. She, like the charming, beautiful witch she is, was already at the table, and it looked like she had already eaten, too.

"Godric, Evans, how long does it take you to eat?" I asked, shocked.

Without waiting a moment, she replied, "Three minutes, twelve seconds, last time I counted." I stared in shock, and she turned red under my eyes. To hide her obvious embarrassment, she pulled out a Muggle notebook and a quill, and pushed them both towards me.

"What the hell is this?" I asked.

Lily eyed the first years sitting near us at the Gryffindor table. "Language, Potter. And they are the notes from Remus, Alice, and me about the ball. You should read them. We were contemplating making it a masquerade ball, which Alice and I really liked the idea of. Remus put his foot down at that one. Apparently there is something offensive about a mythical creature costume ball…" I snorted. I wondered how that conversation went.

"I don't understand it. Personally, I think that he would make a very nice werewolf," I stated.

Lily gasped. "That's what I said! He laughed at that, but still refused to, quote unquote, 'let you birds do something as rude and selfish as allow students to openly mock mythical creatures'."

I had to hold in a laugh. Trying hard to keep my chuckles inside, I opened up the notebook and scanned through it. "These look entirely too complicated, and too much work for a dance. I bet you ten Sickles you wrote that, after the three of you met together."

She blushed again. "They are all good ideas, though!" she defended herself.

"Of course they are," I placated her. She glared at me for a moment, then backed off.

Lily pointed to a list in the book. "That is what you need to do by tomorrow, that is what you need to do by next Friday, and THAT is what you need to do before the end of the month."

I stared at her in disgust. "So, now you just hand off all the work to me? In case you haven't figured this out, I have difficult classes this year, almost as difficult as you do. Why should I do everything?"

Lily punched me lightly on the arm. "Salazar, James, do you really think that I would give you all the work? Do you honestly believe that I would trust you with all that work?" I thought about it for a moment, deciding whether to be glad that I don't have to do that much work, or whether to be annoyed with her comment. I chose the former, and let her insult slide by.

She pulled out a long piece of parchment. "This is everything I have to do."

I stared. "That's easily two meters of parchment, and your writing is freakishly tiny."

She snatched the paper away from me as I reached out to look at it. "I'm going to ignore that last comment, and it's obviously one and three quarter meters." She took one last sip of pumpkin juice, then told me, "I'm going to head to Care of Magical Creatures, and as much as I would hate to ask this, you might as well walk with me. You can ask Remus and me any questions you have on our way, and then we'll be ready for Dumbledore."

I agreed, and we stood to depart form the Great Hall, discussing the ball on the way to the lesson.

It was only when we reached Care of Magical Creatures that I remembered I hadn't eaten lunch.

Damn Lily Evans.


	9. Of Pigfarts and Prefects

**A/N: You guys, I am so sorry! I just realized that it's been three months! I feel so bad for not updating. :'( However, I just wrote 10 new chapters, and they should all be going up soon. Yeah, I realized I've said that before. And I mean it this time. I promise. If I haven't updated again within a week, you have permission to Avada Kedavra me.**

"So, Professor, that's what we have planned right now, and I can assure you that it will only get better," I finished. James and I were just finishing up our meeting with Dumbledore, and so far, he looked impressed.

He stood up behind his desk and faced the portraits of old headmasters and headmistresses. "Professors of old, what do you think of the plans of these two young wizards?"

Phineas Black informed me, "Ms. Evans, your talents have been duly noted by many wizards and witches of your time, and it has been proven that you are the brightest witch of your age. Mr. Potter, however, needs to learn to cooperate and work with others. He needs to understand that working with a witch, no matter who she is, does not entail allowing her to do all the work, while he sits back and stares at her."

"Phineas, that's enough. James, Lily, I will now escort you two back to your dormitory." Dumbledore told us, and we nodded. However, Phineas called me back.

I asked, "What is it that you need, Professor Black?"

He said, a bit snottily, if I might add, "Ms. Evans, for being the brightest witch of your age, you really are a dumbass!"

I choked a bit on my own spit. "Professor?"

Phineas turned around, and walked out of his portrait, I guessed to the one in Grimmauld Place. I shook my head, clearing out the thoughts Black had left in my head, and ran after the two men.

Dumbledore and I walked together, pacing through the castle.

"So," he questioned. "How are you doing?"

I sighed. I knew what he meant, and I really hoped he hadn't asked me this. "I'm holding up the best I can. Just trying to be strong for Mum."

Dumbledore looked at me strangely. "You don't need to do that, you know. You are allowed to break down every once in a while."

I laughed humorlessly. "That's what Lily said."

"Smart girl." We walked in companionable silence. "If you or your mother ever need anything, do not be afraid to owl me or come to my office. My father was placed in Azkaban, and while I know that it is not death, it is almost worse to know that he was still alive. The Hogwarts community is here for you."

I looked up at my headmaster gratefully, and in surprise. I had not expected him to give me this personal information, but I was grateful that he had chosen to share with me. "Thank you, professor. There isn't really much that anyone could do. The only thing..."

"What is it?"

"My mum stopped working after... Anyway, she's having some money problems. She was used to my father's income, but now, without that... I think that she wants a new job, but she doesn't know where to look. She doesn't want to be pitied, because of who my father is."

Dumbledore looked thoughtful for a moment. "Actually, I have a cousin, Rumbleroar. He is the headmaster of a school called Pigfarts."

"Pigfarts?" I snorted.

Dumbledore contemplated, "Maybe he would be willing to help your mother out. I will check. And yes, Pigfarts. It is another school for wizards. I trust you know of some of the others?"

I listed them out loud. "There's Hogwarts, Durmstrang, Beauxbatons, Pigfarts…" I still couldn't help but laugh.

Dumbledore smiled. "Those are just the, shall we say, more obvious ones. There are so many more that you haven't learned of."

"Professor, but it doesn't really matter, does it? I went to Hogwarts, my parents went to Hogwarts, and when I have children, they are getting sent to Hogwarts. No Pigfarts for the Potters!"

Dumbledore laughed. "Thank Godric for that. Pigfarts is very impractical, after all. It is on Mars. You would need a rocketship to get there."

I was silent, then questioned, "Did you know that the Potters actually have a rocket ship?"

This time, the professor burst out laughing. "Only you, Mr. Potter, only you," he chuckled, as we reached the common room.

* * *

><p>I entered the common room quickly, still contemplating the meaning of Professor Black's blunt statement. James was sitting on the couch, reading a book. I didn't expect that.<p>

"What's that book?" I asked.

James looked up, startled. "Oh, it's about Hogwarts Prefects and the careers they held later in life. They just put out a new edition yesterday."

"I never thought I would see the day where you had the newest edition of a book on the second day it was available, Potter." I snorted.

He looked a bit embarrassed. "Actually, I got it yesterday," he spilled. "I just haven't had the chance to read it until today."

I sat down on the couch next to him, looking at the page he was reading. "Phineas Black?"

"He's the only one I haven't read yet. I started with my dad, and people I know, and then just continued from there." He told me. I looked at him, intrigued, and he handed the book to me.

"It's on page seventy-two," he said.

I flipped to the page quickly, and started to read. After all the books I had read, I had started to read quite quickly. The page read,

_Harold S. Potter was born in Godric's Hollow on April 7, 1937. He lived there for his entire life, with the exception of attending Hogwarts. A proud Gryffindor, he always claimed that his experiences in the house of the lion formed his entire life. He was a Prefect starting fifth year, and was awarded the honor of becoming Head Boy in his seventh year. Harold became an Auror at age 19, one of the youngest Aurors in the history of the Ministry of Magic in England. He married Selena Beautifa in 1958. The couple had their only child, James Harold, in 1960. _

_Harold was an Auror of legend. He defeated almost 30 followers of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named during the Dark Wizard's time of reign. Harold's most impressive defeat was of Rudolfus Lestrange I, the father of a member of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's inner circle. Lestrange had just been caught performing the Cruciatus Curse on five unsuspecting Muggles in a Muggle food store. With help from two other Aurors, Harold brought Lestrange I into custody, where he was later administered the Dementor's Kiss, after a full trial by the Wizengamot. Harold was awarded an Order of Merlin, First Class for his work._

_Sadly, Harold was killed on August 26, 1977. A follower of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, also called a Death Eater, is believed to be the murderer. The entire Wizarding community offers its condolences to Selena and James Potter, and hopes that the remaining Auror community will succeed in revealing Harold's killer._

Underneath the paragraphs, a picture of James and his dad was inserted. Harold was holding a young James in his lap, and they were both laughing hard. They both looked so incredibly happy, I felt a pang in my chest for what had been.

"Oh, James," I whispered. He hugged me tightly, and for once, I didn't complain or try to leave.

James told me, "Dad hated pictures. Mum snuck up on us." Tears were falling down his cheeks. "That was probably the last picture she ever took of us together, alone. I saw eleven, and it was my birthday. Dumbledore let me go home for the day, since my birthday fell on a weekend."

I turned to face James. "We have to stop this. Your dad and my mum, they didn't die so that we could just sit around and weep. Your dad died protecting you, and while my mum didn't die in the face of danger or adversity or anything like that, I do know that she would never want me to be like this. We need to be strong for our parents."

James smiled softly through the constant tears streaming down his face. "Does this mean that I can snog you? You know, so that I can cheer up a bit?"

I shied away from him. "Just because I'm sad doesn't mean that I'm stupid."

He shrugged his shoulders. "It doesn't hurt to try, though, does it?"

"In our case, yes, actually, it does."

"When will you see that we are perfect?"

"Um, never." I thought for a moment. "Well, actually, there is one scenario where I will realize this."

James looked hopeful. "Well, tell me what it is, then?"

"Well, actually, there are two. The first is if my choice is you or Black." James grinned. "The second is when I fall in love with you."

James looked a bit crestfallen. "Well, it's September. I have basically until June, because after we leave school, we're probably never going to see each other again."

I smirked. "Good luck. You are about to try to accomplish in ten months a task which should take you a billion years. There's a better chance of me traveling to the moon."

James said, "I can make that happen."

"What? How in the world could you possibly get me to the moon? I could catch moon germs, and you would never see me again!"

James looked at me closely. "Why is it that no one knows about the Potter rocket ship?"

"YOU HAVE A ROCKET SHIP?"

"Yeah, the American Ministry of Magic- actually, I believe they call it the Department of Magic there- gifted my father a rocket ship after their first trip to the moon. You saw in the article that Dad captured Rudolphus Lestrange I?" I nodded. "Lestrange was caught in America. This was their thank-you gift."

For once, I was speechless.

**A/N: Sorry, I just couldn't help but add the AVPM stuff in there. Seriously, if you haven't seen A Very Potter Musical, go online and look it up now. It's kind of long (I'm watching it three or four scenes at a time, which is annoying, because I want to see the whole thing!), but it's worth it! For those who don't know, the dumbass line, Pigfarts, Rumbleroar, and the Potter rocket ship are from AVPM.**


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